


Sins of a butterfly

by Singlegaycake



Series: Quiet Zone inbound [1]
Category: Metal Gear
Genre: DD is adorable as a pupper, F/F, I Don't Even Know, I Tried, I Will Go Down With This Ship, I needed more of this stuff ok, Not Beta Read, Quiet is best 100, Reader-Insert, Swearing, Why Did I Write This?, liquid snake is Eli?, quiet sniper help, sort of canon compliant, spoilers?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-25
Updated: 2018-06-14
Packaged: 2019-05-13 15:54:53
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 4,951
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14751857
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Singlegaycake/pseuds/Singlegaycake
Summary: When you first arrived at the Diamond Dogs base as a recruit, you were honestly in wonder at the place and was able to slot into life so easily there: the other soldiers often jabbed at you teasingly for being a crap shot, it soon got to the point that both Miller AND Ocelot were shaking their heads with a sigh."I'm sorry, sir-" You stood firm as you spoke. As you learnt."It's not ideal for a soldier to not be able to shoot, I'll admit. But there is someone to try and teach you at least" Ocelot crossed his arms as he spoke."Boss?" You couldn't see what expression Miller's eyes held but you guessed it was curious as he looked around for the Boss."No. Quiet- and don't you argue Miller. She's our best sniper." Ocelot's tone held no room for arguments- almost as if he was the Big Boss.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So I've recently gotten into Metal Gear Solid 5 a lot and i wanted more of Quiet (i mean- who wouldn't?) but when i looked on here there wasn't much. 
> 
> So i did this ^^* I know i should be working on other things instead of causing my own heart anxiety- but hey, i gotta give best Quiet some time to shine! (plus in this fic you can insert yo self into it! but uh, if your male then im sorry! Just pretend the reader insert bits are just you but really feminine? Idk man)
> 
> anyway, thanks for reading this and if you like it leave kudos and comments! ^^
> 
> Gbye

When you first arrived at the Diamond Dogs base as a recruit, you were honestly in wonder at the place and was able to slot into life so easily there: the other soldiers often jabbed at you teasingly for being a crap shot, it soon got to the point that both Miller AND Ocelot were shaking their heads with a sigh in the main landing zone.

"I'm sorry, sir-" You stood firm as you spoke. As you had been learnt to.

"It's not ideal for a soldier to not be able to shoot, I'll admit. But there is someone to try and teach you at least" Ocelot crossed his arms as he spoke.

"Boss?" You couldn't see what expression Miller's eyes held but you guessed it was curious as he looked around for the Boss.

"No. Quiet- and don't you argue Miller. She's our best sniper." Ocelot's tone held no room for arguments- almost as if he was the Big Boss.

You've heard from other soldiers about the "freak" called Quiet, who currently resides in the cell near the medical bay: she had been brought here by Boss long before you had become a recruit ( _even if at first she had tried to kill him)_ and you had often heard some of the others whispering about her in the barracks. It didn't help that you yourself had only caught sight of her a handful of times; each time more brief than the last, the first time was when you had been tagged by Boss at an outpost  whilst your former comrades tried to fight off the sniper that they could not catch sight of. The second time had been when you had been opted into the Diamond Dogs using " _persuasion"._

_Thinking about that day made your head hurt._

_"_ I still think we should let Boss kill her." Miller grunted in return to Ocelots words and hobbled off.

"Don't worry about him, soldier. I'll have a talk with Boss- you make your way to medical and await further orders." You saluted the veteran before putting your hand down and beginning to make your way to medical. ( _Why did it have to be so long to the medical platform? )_

'The day had been fine so far before these events' would be the words you would  _normally_ utter except- well, it hadn't. You'd been rudely woken up by the insistent barking of DD, which wasn't that bad in all fairness, before the sun had even risen just so that you and your squadron could do some combat missions for Big Boss: you then were exhausted on the flight back which was expected- what wasn't expected (and this was where the day had gone _tits up_ ) was to immediately be tasked to do some training on the base- which lead to your current situation.

_You could already feel your eyes gaining bags under them._

You heard DD first before you saw the canine and Boss too, they both had just hopped back from a mission it seems; blood splattered over the camo armor that Boss wore and DD had the same substance around his mouth and his tail was going a mile a minuet.  _Cute._ You were allowed to have private thoughts, ok??.

You saluted and stood up straight as your other arm held your weapon. "Welcome back to base, Boss!" you greeted firmly.

"This is agent Chatty Hyena- also known as (Y/N), Boss. This one has a....a uh, bad aim as it goes, I thought we could get one of our other best shots to teach em- Quiet. Of course, she's more...tolerant of you so I'm asking you to well, talk to her?" Even Ocelot didn't sound sure of how Boss would ask the sniper. You noted that absentmindedly Ocelot kept stroking DD.

Big Boss glanced at you, the stairs leading to Quiet's cell and finally, Ocelot, before giving a faint nod and thumping down the stairs. "DD, stay" his voice was really deep.  _wow._

\--------------

After a few minuets Big Boss clunked back up the stairs, face set in a firm and normal, blank face. "Well?" Ocelot chuckled as the Boss smirked. "Gotcha."

You had no idea what that meant, honestly. Glancing around, you could feel that deep bone tiredness turn into anxious awareness. Everyone on base talked about how easy she could disappear and re-appear at any time and probably could kill you.  _Maybe even would, kill you._ The air still held it's stiffness as the two veterans watched on- chuckling.

Finally she appeared a foot away from you: dark misty type of stuff forming her before it seemed like her whole body was stripped back from nothing into a  _full human?!_. It all came to Quiet standing tall, staring at you and-  _ **and scantily clad?!**   _The weapons in your hand shook as you held back the instinctive reaction to raise it a her.

"Quiet, this is agent (Y/N)- the one you're going to teach to shoot," Ocelot introduces you both before glancing at Boss. "I hope."

_What were you meant to say?_

_"_ I hear you're an amazing sniper." was said instead. You could  _feel_ the stupid falling out of your mouth but couldn't stop it in time. In all the whispers you had heard; the ones about her being a freak, were founded sure but- she was  _beautiful_ in a I-will-snap-your-neck way. 

Her demeanor didn't change much, nor did her facial expressions change to crack a smile but she nodded faintly anyway. 

"Right, agent, I'll leave you two to train- and if you don't improve your shot at all then be expecting to be moved to the intel team." Ocelot coughed before he started to walk away with the Boss. "DD, come!" at the command the dog gave a brief bark and got up to trot off after them both.

Right away Quiet gave you a once over, hard as iron, glance towards you before she disappeared again, leaving you standing there before she came back and put three bottles on the railing. 

 _Today was going to be a long day._  


	2. Many silent lessons

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You fired another shot, wincing at the blast it let out as you pulled the trigger. Quiet stood a few meters away; silently judging you and living up to her name that came from the other members of your squadron.
> 
> They always had one thing more to say, didn't they?
> 
> "I'll get it, I promise, Boss." you muttered as you aimed another shot at the bottle that were balanced on the railings above Quiet's cell. 
> 
> The sniper herself stood there, watching with that same stone cold glare on her face- or, rather, what you hoped was a glare on her face: whilst you were aiming, Quiet disappeared in that weird smoke again, that anxiousness seeping into your bones again threw off your focus on the bottles.
> 
> "What are you standing around for, Soldier?" Ocelot's voice rang out from behind you, making you want to scream and yell in shock. You straightened out instead and saluted.
> 
> "Sir!," you greeted firmly as he came over to inspect the bullet ridden bottles on the railing. Well, what bullets had managed to land so far, anyway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I'm really impatient and wanted to do this second chapter and plus I'm procrastinating to hella lengths.
> 
> I'm causing my own anxiety and its not fun.
> 
> anyway, i dunno if there'll be any typos....let's hope not!

Once Ocelot and Boss had left you and Quiet alone together and after she had set the bottles down, you had no idea it would be  **this** nerve wracking! Her gaze was always watching you and your aim as you lifted the gun ( _that had been held by your other arm)_ to aim the barrel of the gun down at the bottles before pulling the trigger.

_A migraine was forming just above your eye._

One by one, the bullets zipped towards the bottle; some with accuracy, sure, but some....some were useless. It got to the point that you were fetching the bottles back onto the rails when you managed to shoot them down. Not all was bad though- there was the view and then there was Quiet. The sun looked as if it was shining down onto her with warm caresses and it tickled you  _pink_ to see this deadly sniper, who nearly took Boss out, bask in the sun like a cat. It wasn't just her killer looks ( **literally** ) that kept catching your eye; it was how she was so...so  _graceful_   in how she picked up any gun and shot the bottles with ease. 

_You wanted to get this over with and sleep._

You fired another shot, wincing at the blast it let out as you pulled the trigger. Quiet stood a few meters away; silently judging you and living up to her name that came from the other members of your squadron.

_They always had one thing more to say, didn't they?_

"I'll get it, I promise, Boss." you muttered as you aimed another shot at the bottle that were balanced on the railings above Quiet's cell.

The sniper herself stood there, watching with that same stone cold glare on her face- or, rather, what you hoped was a glare on her face: whilst you were aiming, Quiet disappeared in that weird smoke again, that anxiousness seeping into your bones again threw off your focus on the bottles.

"What are you standing around for, Soldier?" Ocelot's voice rang out from behind you, making you want to scream and yell in shock. You straightened out instead and saluted.

"Sir!," you greeted firmly as he came over to inspect the bullet ridden bottles on the railing. Well, what bullets had managed to land so far, anyway.

"Well? Time to test your mettle, agent," he motioned with his hand to the railing and the bottles before crossing his arms, smirking. Did he know somehow, that you were going to fail?

With a faint nod you raised your gun, steadying your breaths out, lining up the shot with a intake of breath- almost there...

_Wait. Something's weird about this._

You can feel a pressure around your arms and trigger finger, steadying your shaking limbs with an invisible stillness, pulling that shot with a  ** _zip_**! and disappearing as soon as it appeared.

The bullet hit the bottle with accuracy, even you didn't know you could do- or, that _invisible thing could do_  that anyway. Ocelot whistled at the display, clapping as he walked over, not noticing your shattered nerves and anxious eyes that kept glancing around.

"Well done, agent! You've earned your keep," he put a hand on your shoulder and nodded. "Boss will be glad to hear that Quiet managed to teach even you, huh. Where is she, anyway?" How could you explain that even you  _didn't know_ where she was?

"No idea, sir!" you said instead. "And thank you, sir!" oh no.  _Stop speaking._

However, your answer seemed enough for the veteran as he nodded and began to walk away, leaving you to clatter down on the inside. Many questions flew through your head- mainly; what was that thing??? It certainly wasn't you- well, it was but wasn't- there was really only one other person who could do that...

_Speak of the devil._

Quiet reappeared a few seconds later after your pondering; her posture the same before against the railings but her expression had softened some. This time it wasn't your imagination. "Thank you. I think that was you anyway." it was weird talking to someone who didn't answer back at all; usually you would expect an humm, a nod or something if you were talking to squad mates. But you weren't.

Her head tilted to the bottles, as if saying  _"again_  " before leaning back onto the railings, the sun shining down on her yet again.

_You couldn't refuse someone who had just helped._

You raised the gun nozzle again, and took aim.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks again for everyone supporting this lil' thing with kudos, comments and all! It really helps ^^
> 
> If you really like it show it to fellow peeps who need more Quiet (best sniper 100) in their life.
> 
> Maybe- if you really want to i mean.
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	3. Duties of a butterfly soldier

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Since your lessons with Quiet had somewhat improved your aim over the course of a few days, Ocelot had finally gotten word from Boss that you and Quiet would be going on a recon mission, as Miller still did not trust Quiet to be on her own just yet- this is where you come in.
> 
> "Boss, I know that your word is final but- just this soldier will be going with her? The soldier can barely shoot." Miller's words stung a lot into your heart, but you've heard worse.
> 
> Boss mulled it over for a second silently, his gaze turning to you as Ocelot glanced at Miller.
> 
> "Now now, Miller. Agent (Y/N) has improved under Quiet's teaching! Here cadet, show us what you've learnt." Ocelot handed you his pistol, either oblivious to your hands shaking or ignoring it. "Your target?," he called over to other Mother Base soldiers behind them all to set up some bottles on the railings on the Command Center's platform. "See those bottles, cadet? Shoot 'em down and then we'll talk." 
> 
> Oh boy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really like how this lil fic is going so far and really want to continue it- 
> 
> I hope its ok with you guys and gals- 
> 
>  
> 
>  
> 
> cause I will go down with this ship

That day still hung in your mind like a bad rash, the way Quiet helped you and the way she continued to teach you even if her motivation was unclear. You were still surprised she had not  _actually_ killed you like all of your squadron had said she'd do- not that you weren't grateful! Of course, you were still nervous around her and that **had** at times made the gun jam up. But only sometimes and that was far and few between! 

Ever since your lessons with Quiet had somewhat improved your aim over the course of a few days, Ocelot had finally gotten word from Boss that you and Quiet would be going on a recon mission, as Miller still did not trust Quiet to be on her own just yet- that is where you came in. You would be keeping an eye on Quiet as well as helping her with the recon of the enemy base in Afghanistan. 

"Boss, I know that your word is final but- just this soldier will be going with her? The soldier can barely shoot." Miller's words stung a lot into your heart, but you've heard worse.

Boss mulled it over for a second silently, his gaze turning to you as Ocelot glanced at Miller. His ice blue eye, _that had often had a recurring theme of scaring the daylights out of you in your nightmares_ , was staring straight into the thoughts and fears of your being: of course, DD was by his side, panting happily and basking in the sun. At least, that's what you hoped he was doing with that sneak suit on. Quiet herself was standing next to Big Boss, the same deadly quiet aura about her but when she caught eyes with you a glint of familiarity?  _You weren't sure._  

"Now now, Miller. Agent (Y/N) has improved under Quiet's teaching! Here cadet, show us what you've learnt." Ocelot handed you his pistol, either oblivious to your hands shaking or ignoring it. "Your target?," he called over to other Mother Base soldiers behind them all to set up some bottles on the railings on the Command Center's platform. "See those bottles, cadet? Shoot 'em down and then we'll talk."

_Oh boy._

_Remember; take aim, hold steady, take a breath, hold it, slowly exhale and **shoot**_.

You counted the steps in your head, counting down from three and letting out the air in your chest as the barrel let the bullet tear through the air, clashing into the middle bottle with the force of a mini gale. The soldiers around you all stared at the spot where the bottle had been, shock ringing in the air as clear as the weather. Flipping the barrel with a  **click!** you loaded another bullet into the chamber before taking aim again, steadying your arm before repeating the shot- this time the bottle on the left shattered into a million, glittering shards leaving the air filled with silence.

Ocelot smirked and took his gun back when you offered it to him, holstering it on his belt and crossing his arms. "See, Miller? She's capable and an alright shot now, eh Boss?" You had almost forgotten that Boss was there.  **Almost.**

"I see no arguments with the soldier going." Internally, you were cheering but schooled your expression to blank and made your body stand straight. 

Miller grunted, gave you a once over behind those dark shades of his before hobbling off back into the maze of Mother base. 

"There you go cadet, Miller's gave you his word on the matter. Now, you know the mission status. Do not, under any circumstance engage the enemy unless they come too close to blowing your cover, alright?." His tone brooked no space for arguments.

"Yes, Sir!" you saluted in reply before turning to Pequod as it landed, shielding your face from the whipping winds and pulling yourself onto the helicopter. Though, it confused you when Quiet didn't get onto the helicopter but that evaporated into nothing when the helicopter started to take off and she just, you know,  _casually_ jumped on whilst it was five feet in the air! 

"Good luck, cadet!" Ocelot gave a brief wave as DD began to bark, waving his paws once or twice whilst you could see him before it all faded into the endless sea and you were forced to shut the door.

 

\---------

 

Laying face first in the dirt whilst the enemy were just five meters away from you was proving to be taxing: by this point you were beginning to become anxious, afraid that one glance to you would reveal your position in a second. If they didn't shoot you then and there, then Boss and Miller and Ocelot surely would.

 

_That sounded scarier than getting caught by the enemy_. 

 

Quiet was laying on the cliff side, targeting the enemy and pointing them out. Your mission was simple; make your way on foot to the Afghanistan camp where the enemy has set up base camp, scope out the wildlife around the area for the various wildlife protection agencies that would pay you for every animal saved, wait until Quiet has given " **the signal"** and then make your way the  _fuck_ out of there.

 

_If only it had been that simple._

As soon as you had spotted that out post and the search lights, you had ducked into the grass by throwing yourself to the ground and holding your voice from letting something stupid fall out and give your position away.  You didn't have to worry for long as the intercom picked up in your ear.

"Alright, cadet! You can come on back, Quiet is done with her job. Pequod's at the nearest LZ, make your way there- don't die now, soldier!" Finally, you started to shuffle backwards and away from the enemy camp, getting up from the crawl after enough distance was put between you and the spotlights and the distance between the LZ becoming smaller by every step.

Your weapon were still clutched tightly in your grasp but the shakings had subsided. For now. Hopping onto the helicopter, Quiet was doing still crouched on the ground, scanning the surroundings before jumping up and holding on to the side of the helicopter. Again, you were in  _awe_ over how beautiful but deadly she were; brown hair flowing softly behind her, the sunset casting an ethereal glow and it just, suited her in an other world way. Her eyes, they just seemed to captivate you and-  _oh fuck she was watching you staring at her holy fuck._ The ride back to Mother Base could not have gone  **any** quicker, you could feel the heat rise up your neck and settle on your cheeks giving you the tomato look. 

_Why does life hate you right now?_

Of course, no one will ever know what the sniper is thinking at any given time as she slides inside when you shut the door, getting up when you situated yourself on the seats and wandering over to just,  **stare** at you, eyes probably tracing the blush that  _was_ receding, now back in full force, before she let a tiny and fragile smile grace her lips before it was gone along with her back to her seat- leaving you to blink dumbly.

_Your duties as a soldier of the butterfly, huh?_

 

_Life didn't hate you after all!_

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you like this lil thing then leave a comment or a kudo- or two!
> 
> Honestly 100 something views for this is making me want to do more of this!
> 
>  
> 
> Also i forgot disclaimers- Metal Gear Solid and it's characters belong to Hideo Kojima.


	4. Hyena and a Butterfly

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Peqoud on LZ! Standby, Chatty Hyena!" the pilot glanced past Quiet and back at you, turning back around when his attention was needed at the comms. 
> 
> "Roger, Peqoud!" you nodded and went to the door, keeping in mind that Quiet was still sitting behind you silently. On the platform below you could see the landing pad lined and armed with other staff on Mother Base, some were your squadmates and some were from other squadrons on the platform, Miller stood in the middle of them, a deep scowl on his face as you hopped out of the helicopter. Big Boss and Ocelot were also standing close by, watching with avid eyes and possibly watching to see if you had failed in your job.
> 
> You hopped off the helicopter and saluted Miller, Ocelot and the Boss before nodding to the other soldiers as they rushed forward to surround Quiet with guns, incase she decided to run.
> 
> She'd had many a chance before but didn't.
> 
> "Welcome back to Outer Heaven, Hyena".

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am on a roll- problem is my thoughts are too fast for my hands so- 
> 
> sorry this is so long! I honestly just want to get this long chapter out and take a long needed break- i think it'll help you guys from getting sick of this too /-\
> 
>  
> 
> Also I recently did a mission (in game) where you had to extract the child commander White Mamba and- whew boy was *that* fun! (i found out through uh, spoilers, who Eli really is 0=0 )

"Peqoud on LZ! Standby, Chatty Hyena!" the pilot glanced past Quiet and back at you, turning back around when his attention was needed at the comms.

"Roger, Peqoud!" you nodded and went to the door, keeping in mind that Quiet was still sitting behind you silently. On the platform below you could see the landing pad lined and armed with other staff on Mother Base, some were your squadmates and some were from other squadrons on the platform, Miller stood in the middle of them, a deep scowl on his face as you hopped out of the helicopter. Big Boss and Ocelot were also standing close by, watching with avid eyes and possibly watching to see if you had failed in your job.

You hopped off the helicopter and saluted Miller, Ocelot and the Boss before nodding to the other soldiers as they rushed forward to surround Quiet with guns, incase she decided to run.

She'd had many a chance before but didn't.

"Welcome back to Outer Heaven, Hyena," Ocelot gave you a brief nod of the head and glanced at the Boss, who grunted as DD came running up to you. Lately out of missions they had just taken to calling you Hyena, which, you didn't mind. Not much.

"Thank you, sir!" you spoke firmly and let the dog, wolf? coyote?, sniff your hand before turning to face Miller and his judgement. You could see the way Quiet stared at Miller, glancing towards Boss, her eyes catching yours for a second, before that same black mist type of stuff engulfed her, leaving no trail of her behind as she disappeared. Miller made a  _tsk_ noise before hobbling towards you and the two men beside you.

"See, Miller? Quiet managed to complete the mission and the soldier managed just fine," as ocelot spoke he crossed his arms though he was smiling, "and we received GMP payment from the various Animal saving agencies for the Fulton extractions the cadet did." You could feel the praise making your head begin to swim.

_You just wanted to go back to staff living quarters and sleep off your migraine already._

Miller continued to stare at Ocelot, the shades still hid his true intent but, you supposed that he was satisfied as he concluded his silence and made his way back to wherever he had come from originally. 

"Dismissed, cadet," Boss made a motion with his prosthetic hand as you saluted. "DD, come."

"Thank you, Boss!" you answered firmly, jogging off once they were out of sight and back to the staff living quarters. Even the walk to the quarters had your eyes drooping tiredly, sleep tugging wearily at your limbs and thoughts. 

_When was the last time you had slept?_

Ever since you came to Mother Base, sleep has eluded you: in the dawning hours of the morning you would wake up, turning restlessly, sweating up a storm and this was accompanied by a low and painful  _throb_ just in the front of your head.

_Must of been where Boss had Fulton'd you._

The heavy doors separating the living quarters were heavy, bolt laden things that often- on the odd day still- would require multiple soldiers on base just to shove the door open.  **Especially after it had rained**. They were a bitch to open but- right now, the siren call of bed was calling to you like a lighthouse would call to a ship.

Opening the door, of course, took some time but when you did open it the last thing you had expected to see were-  **children?!** Taken aback a step you looked at the soldier stood by the wall with a look of " _why are there kids here?!"_ as they all turned around to face you: they all had ragged clothing, dirt and grime clinging to them. 

_Had Boss saved these kids? Must've been whilst you were out on recon._

"Don't mind them, Hyena. Boss brought 'em in when you were out on recon, we're rehabilitating them," as the soldier talked and pointed out the individual kids, one child barged past you and inside the staff living quarters as if he had a chip on his shoulder. "And that is Eli, he was the kids commander until Boss brought him back here for rehabilitation, too. Don't worry, he's uh...feisty, but we're keeping an eye on him." as if on cue, Eli turned around to glare daggers at you as he strutted his way back into base.

"Gotcha....?" You nodded slowly before making your own way to your designated bunk, falling asleep once you stored your weapon away and taken off most of your gear and when you hit the bunk-

_lights out._

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So hey, if you like this good ol' chapter give it a kudo or two! Maybe a comment if you're feeling generous, huh
> 
> This chapter broke my fingers but i couldn't stop until it was concluded, so-
> 
> I is stubborn ^^*


	5. Infectious Smile (literally)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I'm sorry, (Y/N), but you have to be quarantined. This mysterious illness has taken over most of the soldiers on base...and we don't want anyone else to fall prey to this disease. Until we can assess if you are symbiotic to this disease- you will have to stay in quarantine." The words falling from Ocelots mouth didn't seem real; they seemed to fly right out of his mouth to hover in front of your eyes, taunting you. Maybe this was an illusion?
> 
> "Y-Yes, Sir!" you saluted anyway, noticing in the side of your vision how Quiet seemed crestfallen, her eyes glancing at Ocelot as if to say "not her too." even if she stood strong and silent next to Boss.
> 
> "Boss, you're continuously searching for a way to diagnose this disease and Quiet will be accompanying you." At this Miller grunted but otherwise kept quiet on the matter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I'm sorry for the long wait! I've decided to keep this lil' series going and so far it's been going good due to you guys being amazing on reading it and giving it kudos!
> 
> This chapter is based on the ingame part where an infection is sweeping over Mother Base but no one knows what it is. I haven't figured out how to stop it and people are dying ;-; (rip Pouncing Hippo, my favouritely named soldier)

Recently on Mother Base, everyone had suddenly started becoming sick; it had started with one of your squadmates murmuring about,  _"I don't feel so well, guess it's time to see the doc"_ which didn't sound  **too** out of the ordinary, really. Some soldiers suffered from PTSD or some sickness you've never heard of from another country they had just come from and only served as a warning as to what was coming. 

Each time you came back to the intel platform from training with Quiet, more soldiers were dropping with this mysterious illness like flies. Soon, half of your squadron and others were in quarantine until Boss found whatever was causing this. Each time he left, however, was more  _urgent_ than the last: a scowl marring most of his face, posture stiff and shoulders tense. DD was also at his side each time, tail wagging as usual but his barking, that could be heard from across Mother base, were quiet yipping things of noise. 

_Some people say animals can sense sickness, right?_

It was only when the illness claimed it's first victim that the whole base reared it's head up and started to issue masks for everyone with a gun and to those that weren't showing signs of illness. It was also around the time that you noticed that Quiet wasn't wearing a mask. You had often heard other soldiers remark about staying near her and becoming ill or some claiming crazy when guarding her cell. It hurt, in a weird twisted way it hurt to know that your friends,  _your family,_ looked at someone you had now spent so much time with in distrust.

_Another headache?_

It struck you as worrying however when Miller, Boss  **and** Ocelot all came to find you during practice on the medical platform. Irony.

"I'm sorry, (Y/N), but you have to be quarantined. This mysterious illness has taken over most of the soldiers on base...and we don't want anyone else to fall prey to this disease. Until we can assess if you are symbiotic to this disease- you will have to stay in quarantine." The words falling from Ocelots mouth didn't seem real; they seemed to fly right out of his mouth to hover in front of your eyes, taunting you. Maybe this was an illusion?

"Y-Yes, Sir!" you saluted anyway, noticing in the side of your vision how Quiet seemed crestfallen, her eyes glancing at Ocelot as if to say " _not her too_." even if she stood strong and silent next to Boss.

"Boss, you're continuously searching for a way to diagnose this disease and Quiet will be accompanying you." At this Miller grunted but otherwise kept quiet on the matter. "Meanwhile, cadet, you will stay in quarantine until a new development occurs. We will notify all base members of it but until then." Miller glanced at the Boss as if to confirm his plans. "Stay on quarantine, soldier!" His resolve both astounded you and scared you.  _Just a tiny bit._

\-----

So, here you are.

Pacing the quarantined quarters was not your idea of fun. Every soldier inside the sick ridden tents could be heard coughing from up the platforms stairs; the stench of something off, something  _not right_ seeped into the air. It made it worse that you could somehow smell it through the mask and protective clothing. 

_The smell of death._

You could swear that with every bit of coughing, vomiting of blood there was the underlying sense of illness that followed every soldier based on the quarantine platform like a bad rash. It made your skin itch. 

"Chatty Hyena!" a voice caught your attention, pulling you away from those thoughts and to the soldier that was busy jogging towards you, his gun clutched tightly to his chest. It was safe to say you recognized him: It was one of your squadmates, Laughing Llama, who had joined Diamond Dogs the same way you had.

_The same outpost too._

When he got within talking distance, he nodded to you before speaking. "Hey, Chatty Hyena, you on quarantine too? Man, it's getting us  **all,** huh?" he scratched his head, tried to anyway, before realizing that he should introduce himself. "Oh, I'm Laughing Llama- but, you can call me Tom."

"You're my squadmate, right?," at his nod you continued, "Well, I'm (Y/N), you can also just call me Hyena- everyone does at some point." T _oo blunt_

_"_ Man, everyone's been talking on base 'bout this sickness!" Tom hesitated after speaking, an internal battle seemingly won as he continued to speak. "So, it's true right? That you hang out with that  **freak** on the medical base, right? Man, (Y/N)!" he whistled as you recoiled at his words. How  **dare** he? How dare he talk about Quiet like that? It was obvious who he meant by "freak". The whispers around base had proven that term to be associated with her after her arrival on Mother Base: hearing the soldier infront of you talk about her like that-

_It made you **angry.**_

This angered scared you- even when things in life had gone wrong for you this type of anger had never,  **never,** occurred to you before. Not even that time before Boss had fulton'd you from that outpost in Afghanistan, a quick hit from his gun from behind you and then strapping that fulton 'round your base. The "persuasion" didn't help that anger either.

_So, why did you let him continue talking?_

"Everyone's saying that she's causing the sickness, y'know? That she's part of the Skull team and was sent here to spy on us by their boss." His eyes twinkled with a twisted sense of smugness at you.  **Taunting you** in some primal way, even you couldn't explain. Of course, you couldn't  _hit_ him; every time fights broke out on the various platforms and the victims were sent to Medical, the one who had caused it often received penalties for their actions and a weeks suspension from going on missions. Plus, they were made to do guard duty for that week.

_What could you say?_

"Quiet has been a valuable asset to Big Boss and helping me to shoot." You said instead, noting how Tom's body seemed to twitch in shock from you finally breaking his chain of speech. "Just as you have been valuable to Mother Base,  **Llama."** without further ado, you walked away, leaving the other soldier standing there; a bitter feeling left on the back of his neck and a dash of guilt.

" _Good_ " Some sick, twisted part of your conscience cackled, twisting around your brain and gloating in satisfaction at how easily you shut him up. Your headache was getting worse, your vision danced before your eyes, breaths becoming unsteady and your chest **hurting.** _Was this what the other soldiers were talking about? Or were you over thinking things and making yourself sick?_

The last thing you thought of before you hit the ground was about Quiet.

_How her smile seemed so infectious to your love sick mind._   

 

  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading this lil' ficlet of mine! If you liked it why not give it a kudo? why not two and a comment! Every little bit helps! (literally)
> 
> Every character in Metal Gear Solid 5 belongs to Hideo Kajima, true god XD (i kid honest)
> 
> Also no offence to any Toms out there, I ran out of generic names? ^^*

**Author's Note:**

> Maybe a chapter 2? If this is really liked enough that is-
> 
> Anyway! Thanks for reading and sticking with me!


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